Nearly Witches
by tamachan247
Summary: Ciel Riddle always wanted to be the hero, that is until her dark urges and family history got the best of her. Will Draco Malfoy be the only one to save her in the end?
1. She's a What?

Chapter One:

**She's A What?**

If you were to ask anyone what they thought of the Riddle family living on Gloucester Road, they would automatically tell you they were not only some of the most refined people on the street, but also in the whole town. They were the most unlikely people you would expect to be related to the most powerful dark sorcerer in the world; it was mostly from the fact that no one in that family believe in anything supernatural or magical.

Mr. John Thomas Riddle belonged to the Science Department of Oxford University located in London, where he worked as a Professor at the local school. Despite his old age, he was a good-looking fellow who could have passed as being in his late 40s. Mr. Riddle was not only lean, but also tall. He had once possessed sleek dark hair and a face build like a god's, but with the help of old age, Mr. Riddle's features had changed significantly. His hair was styled with a wavy grease, partial strands flipping over his eyes, and his once god-like face was now sagging; facial hair hardened his skin. Thanks to his cold blue eyes, Mr. Riddle never seemed to have any problem getting what he wanted. Even John's lovely wife Elizabeth had a problem refusing anything from her husband.

Mrs. Riddle was small and petite compared to her husband, who was twenty-five years her senior. She was the very image people had of a native Greek woman. She had long flowing mocha hair that reached the small of her back and hazel eyes that would pin one down like a shot arrow. Even with fortunate looks like her own she never bothered to use them to her advantage. Mrs. Riddle spent most of her days cooped up at home drawing and writing children's novels not only for children all over the world, but for her own daughter as well.

The Riddles had a small 11-year-old girl whom they called Cilia, or as most liked to say, Ciel. Both parents couldn't have asked for a better daughter. She had been gifted by the two of them, possessing dark eyes and hair like her mother, but a lively face just like her father. Looks weren't the only thing that seemed to have passed down generically: their daughter's eagerness to learn was also noticeable. Ciel was fervent to one day grow up and become an alchemist, for the persuasion of her father had led her to find Science exciting. She loved the fact that the mixing of two chemicals could produce a different substance or reaction. Even though she took academic classes seriously, Ciel just loved to read stories. She had a penchant for love stories, particularly those such as _Romeo and Juliet_ and _Pride and Prejudice_. To Mr. And Mrs. Riddle, their daughter was the best thing either one of them could have asked for.

The Riddles had all they could have asked for in life. They had a luxurious Tudor styled home in London and a steady income to support themselves. Everything seemed to have been perfect in their lives until one year, at the time when August first came fluttering by.

August the first seemed to have been just like any normal day. The summer sun was up and completely convenient, not only for the little 11-year-old Cilia but for her mother as well. The weather was perfect, not too hot or too cold, and the sun was high in the air and a nice breeze was able to roll over the grass.

Cilia was on the swings in the local park singing a tune from the radio. She was excited for the new school year at the neighboring Academy. The summer had felt too long already for the child and she could no longer hold in her excitement of the thought of seeing her mates from school.

Mrs. Riddle sat on one of the benches, with another local mother. The two women held magazines on their laps, chattering like old friends. Mrs. Riddle didn't pay much attention to her daughter as she swung around with grace, her loose pants ruffling with the breeze.

"Mum, mum, look at me!" The eleven-year-old called. The girl's mother glanced up from the other mother beside her. She smiled sweetly at her only daughter, her lips forming into an almost perfect smile. As soon as the child saw her mother smile at her, she let go of the swing.

Mrs. Riddle found her daughter launched through the air. Ciel's legs kicked the air and she flew from the swings a few yards away to the dirt floor. Mrs. Riddle wasn't able to stop herself from gasping as her daughter fell on her knees first, followed by the rest of her body.

"Are you alright darling?" She called toward her daughter, her bottom already on the edge of her seat. Cilia craned her small neck off of the mud and gave her mother a goofy grin.

"I'm alright mum." The small brunette picked her light body off of the playground floor. She rushed over to her mother, skipping with joy. She wasn't aware of the disapproving look her mother was giving her. The only thing that the girl thought about was how much fun it was to fly across the air. If she could have wished for anything in the world, it would be to one day fly in the air like a bird.

"Sweetie, you shouldn't be jumping like that, you might hurt yourself next time."

"But mum," the daughter threw her arms over her mother's neck and hugged her tightly. "I like flying through the air. I feel like a bird when I do so." Cilia's mother kissed her cheek making sure to not get any of her cherry lipstick on her angels face.

"Yes, I know, dear, just like a bird. Now let me see those hands of yours." Mrs. Riddle pulled her daughter off of her gently and took a peak at her small palms. She was rattled. Cilia watched her mother's eyes; they were cold. She hated when her mum's eyes got like that. "You scraped your hands pretty badly dear."

"It's not a big deal. The scrapes don't hurt." Ciel pulled her hands out of her mum's grasp hugging them to her not yet developed chest. "Don't worry about it please."

"No, I think it's best if we go home, then I can put something on it."

"Mum," The child whined in her high-pitched voice. Mrs. Riddle kissed her daughter's cheek one more time and sat up from the bench. "Mum please; let me stay just a little bit longer. I swear I won't jump off of the swings again."

"Your father should have dinner soon. It's about time we go." Cilia gave her mother a very gloomy expression. The latter simply gave her daughter the same exact look back only to mock her. "Let's go."

Mrs. Riddle said her goodbyes to her friend on the bench. She and her daughter headed back to their perfect white home in a hurry. As she and her child walked into their residence, the first thing she noticed was that something was off. The home didn't have the same presence it had when they had left. The dream home was now quiet, but at the same time much warmer than it had been when the two of them had left. She was sure her husband had finished preparing the dinner for that night and even managed to boil tea during his wait.

"Jonathan," Mrs. Riddle called as she and her daughter walked into the warm house, closing the wooden door behind the two of them.

Mrs. Riddle heard a throat clear. "Lizi-er- I'm in the living room. Is Cilia with you?" Her husband sounded muffled. The tone made Mrs. Riddle frown momentarily, but she smiled once more as she refused to let her daughter see her act in such a way.

"Yes, Cilia's with me, is there something wrong dear?" Mrs. Riddle poked her head into the living room. She realized why the house had been so quiet: they had a guest.

A man with silver hair sat on the couch opposite of her husband. He had what seemed to be purple a silk bathrobe on, his silver mane resting on his lap.

Mr. Riddle sat on his 'special' chair, sipping from the porcelain teacups that the family used. He was sitting silently, glancing down at a letter on his lap. The strange man on the couch remained unvoiced, but his blue eyes pierced the woman and her daughter through his half-moon spectacles.

"J-John, would you like to introduce us?" Mrs. Riddle moved the remaining part of her body from the corner of the entrance, dragging along her dirty princess with her. Mr. Riddle shot his head away from the letter, but kept holding it tightly.

"He says his name is Albus Dumbledore. He's a teacher from some sort of institute," said Mr. Riddle stiffly.

Mrs. Riddle nodded toward her spouse slowly and smiled at the old man.

"Hello, I'm Elizabeth Riddle. I'm John's wife." Mrs. Riddle held out her hand toward the man with the half-moon spectacles. The man, Albus, smiled with his blue eyes and took the woman's hand in response, giving her a friendly shake.

"It's a pleasure meeting you as well. As your husband has cleared up; I'm Albus Dumbledore. I'm the Headmaster of a school called Hogwarts. I have come to offer your daughter a place at my school- her new school, if she would like to attend."

"That sounds lovely." Mrs. Riddle smiled in delight. She had always known her daughter was smart. She received good grades in her Academy and all her teachers loved her. Mrs. Riddle looked down at Ciel for a moment and then over at her husband who still hadn't loosened up. Mr. Riddle took another sip of his black tea and placed the cup back on its appropriate cozy. "Jonathan, don't you think this is just lovely? I can't believe our daughter is being accepted into an institute. I can't wait to tell my family this, they will be so proud."

Her husband didn't share the same enthusiasm as her. He sat in his seat remaining to look bitter.

"Don't get your hopes up yet, Elizabeth. They want her to go to some rubbish school. I will not let my only daughter attend a good for nothing place like _this._" Mrs. Riddle shot her husband a nasty look. He was rude at times but usually _never_ in front of guests.

"Well, I can come to a conclusion myself dear. Give me the letter please." Her husband handed her the parchment along with the envelope. He then slouched in his chair; acting just like a child. Elizabeth ignored her husband's attitude and read over the letter silently to herself. She was shocked.

"Mum what does it say? I want to look at the letter too!" Cilia squealed in eagerness. She had her hand gripped on the paper trying in the most civil way possible to peel the letter out of her mother's hands. Mrs. Riddle finally let go of the letter her daughter prayed so hard to get.

Ciel smiled in success. She glanced down at the fragile parchment in her hands and read:

* * *

><p><strong>HOGWARTS SCHOOL <strong>

**of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY**

Headmaster: ALBUS DUMBLEDORE

_(Order of Merlin, first Class, Grand Sorc, Chf. Worlock,_

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. Of Wizards)_

Dear Miss. Riddle,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1st. We await for an owl no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall,

_Deputy Headmistress_

* * *

><p>Questions bounced off of the walls of the young girls head. She wasn't quite sure how she was supposed to react when it came to the letter. Magic couldn't have possibly been real, but the thought that it could be possible began to float around her head. She couldn't believe they had a school for people who could do magic.<p>

"So this Hogwarts place, it's an establishment for magic," Cilia questioned as Dumbledore made a small gesture with his head.

The questions began to build up once more in her head. "So you're telling me that magic really exists?"

"That is precisely what I am saying."

Cilia began to think back to her dream. She always dreamed about becoming an alchemist and getting involves with Science. Her mother used to tell her stories about wizards being able to turn simple metals into gold, but hearing now that these fables were true blew Ciel's mind.

"So alchemy really exists then."

Dumbledore smiled at the fascinated child. Ciel almost jumped from excitement.

"That's so cool! Can I go please, please, please?" laughed Cilia, who began to jump up and down in amusement.

Mr. Riddle snorted from his seat. He rolled his blue eyes in annoyance. He was furious at how easily his daughter was able to believe in such nonsense He always thought he had raised his daughter better. "No. I will not allow you to go. You are _not_ going to some dimwitted school of magic," snapped Mr. Riddle.

"But, dad…"

"There is no such thing as magic!" said Mr. Riddle stiffly. His daughter glanced at him, her weight sinking down to her lit up sneakers. He didn't say another word on the subject. His daughter quietly stepped back away from both her mother and father, but she couldn't stop from looking at the letter. Mr. Riddle knew she was still blinded by curiosity.

"Jonathan, don't yell at her," begged the young Mrs. Riddle. The woman turned toward her guest, no longer smiling happily as she had before. "I have to agree with my husband on this one, Mr. Dumbledore, sir. As much as I would love to say that you're right, there is no proof magic even exists. All those old magic tricks done in the old days have been proven by science. It would be very…interesting… if it were real, but I must agree with my husband. Magic can't possibly exist."

The little girl in the back of the room turned even colder than she had been before. Her big hazel eyes reached out toward the Professor. She was begging him to prove her parents wrong. She wanted to go to the school so badly.

Dumbledore caught the young girl's pleading look. He gave her a small smile, eyes twinkling behind the glasses.

"I may prove it if you see fit." Mrs. Riddle stood on the balls of her feet. She too wanted proof of the supernatural, but feared to admit it in front of her husband, who she knew would protest about it later. Despite knowing the consequences that would occur if she agreed, she went and did so anyway. She gave a small motion with her head, which was more than enough for Dumbledore.

Dumbledore drew his wand from the inside of his robes. He held the piece of wood in his hands and pointed it at the teacup and other kitchen utensils that were placed in the living room. With his wand at hand, he gave a casual flick of the wrist.

The teacups and the plates all rose into the air, hovering silently for a moment. Mr. Riddle jumped in his seat, his eyes widened in shock. The entire Riddle family watched the dishes float gracefully toward the kitchen and into the sink, where a sponge came to assist the cleaning of the dishes. Mrs. Riddle and her daughter could hardly hold in their excitement. It was unbelievable and shocking, but at the same time mind-blowing and amazing.

Mrs. Riddle was completely convinced on the subject. There couldn't have been any scientific explanation for something like that. Gravity can't suddenly choose to give away in a certain area of the room, let alone allow the dishes to float to the sink to get washed.

On the other hand, Mr. Riddle was furious. He didn't care if he just saw the strange man levitate his dishes. He would stand by his statement. Magic wasn't real and it never would be in his eyes.

"Stop it right now," commanded Mr. Riddle. "I refuse to allow any more of this rubbish to continue in my house."

"John, stop it already, what more do you want?" Mr. Riddle looked frightened.

"There has to be a scientific explanation for that to happen. There is no such thing as-"

"So, Mr. Dumbledore," Mrs. Riddle cut her husband off. Dumbledore turned his attention away from the man of the house. "How do you know our daughter possesses anything magical about her?" Mrs. Riddle walked across the room and took a seat on one of the vacant chairs. Dumbledore let his eyes wonder away from Mrs. Riddle. He smiled at the young girl who hadn't moved an inch from her spot.

"We've been watching her for quite some time," Dumbledore's eyes trailed back to Mrs. Riddle's. "We strongly believe she posses magic."

Mrs. Riddle frowned. Not only had she not received an answer from Dumbledore, but the fact that the strange man had been watching her daughter for a while made her uneasy. Dumbledore turned back to the young girl and smiled. "Miss. Riddle, has there ever been a time that you were able to do something that was unexplained, something that shouldn't have been done with science?"

Mr. and Mrs. Riddle studied their daughter. Her pale face turned red. She snapped her head to the ground, watching her toes as she swayed her weight between her two feet.

"I don't know," whispered Cilia. "I guess I might have. There was this one time in school that I got angry at this one boy. It was strange, 'cause the next thing I knew the glass that was on the window shattered and broke all over the place."

Mr. Riddle jumped to his feet. "That doesn't prove anything strange goes on with my daughter. It was probably result of low air pressure, it was too much for the glass to-"

"John-" called Mrs. Riddle. The husband looked at his wife, about to beg her to allow him to finish, but changing his mind, he sat back down in his chair. Mrs. Riddle smiled and edged to the corner of her seat. "You believe something like the random breaking of glass means she's a witch?"

"It's just one of the many things that happens when children first start to show signs of having magical capability." Mrs. Riddle shared a look with her husband. She now got the same feeling her husband had, that Dumbledore must have been crazy. There was still no proof that her daughter had any magical traits. She was as normal as any other child in the neighborhood.

"I'm sorry; I just don't see how you can just determine something like that because of a window."

"The ministry of magic and myself had _another_ reason in assuming she might also be a witch." Dumbledore brought his bony fingers to his beard. Mr. And Mrs. Riddle watched him flatten down his silver mane. "Now Mr. Riddle here plays a big role in this regrettably."

"Me?" Mr. Riddle was outraged not only had he not want to be part of any of this but he was the main source of it. Dumbledore nodded silently, as his fingers rolled a few strands against one another.

"Yes, Mr. Riddle, _you_. You see Mr. Riddle's half-brother-"

"I don't have any siblings," claimed Mr. Riddle. Dumbledore grinned with his eyes finally letting go of his strands.

"No siblings you know of. We've been watching you as well since you were in your teens." Mr. Riddle snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "As I was saying, your half-brother Tom Marvolo Riddle was also a wizard. His mother was a witch while your father was a muggle,"

"What's a muggle?" Questioned Ciel as she inched back into the room but steered clear away from her father.

"Oh dear, I did it again. A muggle, is what we call someone who doesn't possess any magic."

"Hold on, hold on, that's not possible," disagreed Mr. Riddle. "My father never married before he met my mother and he _didn't_ have another lover."

"I suspect your father was ashamed and never wanted to admit it."

It was impossible to tell what Mr. Riddle was thinking; his face was as stiff as a board. It would have killed him to imagine that his father, a man he had looked up to for years, would ever have had such a dangerous past. When Mr. Riddle finished sulking, he turned to his wife for support.

"Mr. Dumbledore, if we were to allow our daughter to enter your school, what sort of benefits would she be receiving? I don't want to send her somewhere and then find out it's a waste." Mrs. Riddle smiled at her daughter, who was shaking in excitement. Even though Mrs. Riddle was nervous about the whole situation, she could tell that her daughter wanted to go to the school badly. To Mrs. Riddle, the choice of sending her daughter to a 'wizarding' school wouldn't have been bad if Cilia received lessons that would last her a life time.

"I had a feeling you would be the family to ask about that," chuckled Dumbledore. He reached into his robes once more, but this time pulled out another flat letter. He slid the parchment across the glass coffee table. Mrs. Riddle received it and found the list of courses and school expectations. "Being a first year student, Miss Riddle will be required to attend first year classes. These classes are Herbology, Charms, Transfigurations, A History of Magic, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Astronomy as well as Care for Magical Creatures. They will also have flying lessons-"

Cilia had eyes of greed: "Flying lessons, you're saying we're going to be taught to fly through the air?" Cilia's eyes filled more with passion as realization hit her. "Wait a minute, do we get to use broom sticks?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Yes, flying requires a boom." Sure enough, Cilia stepped toward Dumbledore, her hands crushing the very important letters she was still holding. "In the wizarding world, we even have sports that require players to ride on brooms. Quidditch for example, is very popular; you could say it's like soccer for the non-magical folk."

Even though Cilia had no idea what Quidditch was or how to even play the game, she already had an idea in her head of wanting to do it as soon as she attended the school. It didn't matter how long it would take for her to achieve the goal, because all she aimed for was to one day play Quidditch and finally be able to fly through the air.

"Is there a Quidditch team at Hogwarts?" Cilia jumped on the balls of her feet. Mrs. Riddle giggled; her daughter looked just like an overly excited puppy dog.

"There are four very skilled teams at our school."

Dumbledore sounded like an old man thinking back about all of the childish things his kids used to do. He began to run his fingers down his beard once more shaking his head happily. Mrs. Riddle's daughter, still too immature to notice any difference, didn't pay any attention to the old man's habits. She remained on her toes bouncing happily.

"Can I join?" questioned Cilia.

"Indeed, but that's all in good time, my dear," said Dumbledore with a smile. The Professor turned away from Mrs. Riddle's only daughter and back to the mother herself. She was, after all, the person he was trying to convince. "Our school tries to achieve many goals but our main objective, in my eyes, is to teach you not only how to use the magic that you have, but also to control it. I believe most importantly that your daughter will discover many life lessons at our school. She will learn the act of conscientiousness, companionship, and strength. It would be an honor if young Miss. Riddle accepted our school's invitation."

"I bet it _would_ be an honor," boasted Mr. Riddle bitterly from his chair. "_What_ makes you think she _won't_ be achieving any of these skills in a regular academy?"

"She could very well learn those life skills in other places, but Hogwarts is a privilege for the girl. At our school, your daughter will be around people just like her. You won't have to be concerned about her well being, as she will be completely safe under my watch, Mr. Riddle."

The un-amused Mr. Riddle muttered something on the lines of 'slick git'. He sank even lower into his seat. It didn't take a genius to figure out Mr. Riddle would never accept something so ludicrous as magic. He was a scientific type of person and had his philosophy hammered in his head.

Mrs. Riddle didn't bother to consult with her husband on the matter. Living with the man for fourteen years had taught the young lady that it would impossible to try and prove her husband wrong. It was his personally that made him so stiff. He was too old fashioned and hated to admit that he was wrong about anything.

"How much would this school be, then, Mr. Dumbledore?" Money was never an issue with the Riddle family. Mr. Riddle made enough money at the University so that they could have raised two more kids if they had wished. They were definitely still a middle class family, but chose to live in the upper middle class.

Dumbledore's sea blue eyes glittered. He had already known that Mrs. Riddle would have done something like that, for he was aware that money was no issue and also had a feeling that they wouldn't be anything like the rich families that lived back in the Wizarding World.

"Hogwarts is a free institute, but you must pay for the school books and robes yourself."

"Where can we purchase them?"

"In Diagon Alley," said Dumbledore "I have your list of school equipment with me. If you would like to see them, then look inside the envelope I just handed you. It has the complete list,"

Mrs. Riddle pulled out the other piece of paper that was tucked into the envelope. The complete supply list for first-year students at Hogwarts was listed in ink that read very clearly on the paper. Mrs. Riddle frowned unintentionally. She had never heard of most of the materials before.

"If there is any problem with getting the supplies, I could help you find everything you need."

"Can I go to the school, please mum, say yes," begged Cilia franticly.

Mrs. Riddle thought about it. Everything seemed so well planned out: the school, the materials, the courses, the expectations. Even though the school wasn't promoting the type of daughter she wanted Cilia to turn out to be, it didn't seem all too bad.

"Should I even bother to ask what you think, John?" she asked, only so that he felt like he was a part of the decision.

"You already have my answer," grumbled Mr. Riddle.

"Right- well- it doesn't sound like such a bad place. How would we bring her to the school?"

Mrs. Riddle and the other adults heard the young witch scream in delight.

"Well, I've written down all the rest of the information on a separate piece of parchment. You should be able to find it inside of the envelope I gave you," said Dumbledore. "You should go to King's Cross Station on September first and wait for the train. Your ticket should be located in the envelope." Mrs. Riddle found the train ticket inside the envelope along with the parchment Dumbledore spoke of. She glanced at it all for a moment and tucked everything back inside of it, deciding there and then that she would look at the rest of the stuff later. Mrs. Riddle placed the letters on her lap.

"You should expect to see our daughter the first at Kings Cross, then."

"I'm glad to hear that." Dumbledore gave Mrs. Riddle a generous nod of the head.

Both Dumbledore and Mrs. Riddle stood up. Mr. Riddle dragged himself off of his seat and the family escorted Dumbledore to the door. Mrs. Riddle smiled as much as her daughter as she shook Dumbledore's hand goodbye. Mr. Riddle didn't bother to offer his hand out he was still very bitter on what had happened and didn't want any involvement with the crazy bloke.

When it seemed that the trouble would be over for Mr. Riddle, Dumbledore stopped at the door. He turned back toward the Riddle family as though he had forgotten something very important. Mrs. Riddle's brow rose.

"Is there something wrong?"

"Oh yes, it seemed I've almost forgotten something," The entire Riddle family frowned. Even little Cilia began to frown in confusion. The whole phrasing of his sentence even made her feel nervous. Had he possibly made a mistake with the wrong person, was she really not who he thought she was?

Dumbledore smiled in a reassuring way. He sensed the fear seeping through the girl's skin. "I haven't made a mistake on what you are dear. I just remembered something important I was supposed to warn you of." The statement caught Mrs. Riddle's eyes. "I think it would be best if Miss. Riddle were to hide her real name from other students in our school, just for precautionary reasons."

"Precautionary? How come?"

"It's quite a long story," chuckled Dumbledore.

Mr. and Mrs. Riddle were not at all pleased with the statement. They didn't care how long it took, all they wanted to make sure of was that their daughter would be safe at all costs, and if it took a long time for them to find out, then so be it.

Dumbledore sighed lightly. He saw they weren't going to let him off the hook so easily. "Remember how I mentioned young Mr. Tom Riddle earlier?" Mr. and Mrs. Riddle nodded stiffly, "He isn't on the _greatest_ terms with us in our community."

"How so?" asked Mr. Riddle.

He was curious to find out more about the man who was supposed to be related to him.

"Tom did some horrible things to people by staining his hands with blood and suffering. In our world, Tom is someone whom most people fear. If people were to find out that your daughter was related to the man, it would just be very unpleasant for her."

Mrs. Riddle and her husband glanced over at their princess who was still listening to every single thing they were saying.

"For your daughter's sake, Mr. and Mrs. Riddle, I would suggest using another last name for her, just so she would be able to be treated fairly when she attends her school. It would be regrettable if she had to be bullied because of someone she's never met before."

Mrs. Riddle nodded her head; her husband too had her support when it came to their daughter's safety.

"If that's the case," began Mrs. Riddle, "Cilia and I will think of a name she can use and remember when she's at school."

"That is much appreciated." Dumbledore gave the Riddle family a nod of his head. "Good-bye, Miss. Riddle. I shall see you at Hogwarts."

"Yes, sir, I looked forward to it."

* * *

><p><strong>Yea, you finished the first chapter! Please leave Feedback either good or bad I want to know how the story is going for you all.<strong>

**Some of you might have not noticed this already but this is the re-making of my other DracoXOC story called You can be Romeo and I'll be Juliet. It is still going to have the same plot as before and pretty much the same things are going to happen but the characters are going to be more develope and I intend to make this story not ONLY about the relationship between my character Draco, but about other important things that happen in the Harry Potter Books. **

**I hope you all keep reading and please dont forget to leave feedback :)**


	2. The Quidditch World Cup

Chapter Two:

**The Quidditch World Cup**

Things had hardly changed since the Riddles had learned that their daughter was a witch after all. Even three years later, the grand white house still possessed the warm feeling it once did that day Dumbledore arrived. The living room was laid out the same exact way it had been that August afternoon. A single teacup was placed warmly on its cozy near the single chair. The only thing that changed was the person sitting on the chair.

Mrs. Riddle was the only person awake in the Riddle residence, for the other two members of the family were sound asleep in their warm beds, neither one of them thinking about the company that was to disembark early that morning.

Mrs. Riddle was sitting with the TV on, watching a re-run of 1994 Eurovision. Even though the woman was in her own house, she had her feet squished into a pair of white two inch heels. She tried to stay quiet in the living room so she wouldn't disturb the others in the house, but she was surprised that the racket caused by an argument in the street hadn't woken up either her husband or her daughter.

"Don't touch anything!"

"I haven't touched anything, git. Just find the damn door knocker thing!"

Mrs. Riddle sighed softly. She was almost sure the childish yelling was coming from right outside her door.

The yelling continued.

"Look you idiot, they don't have a door knocker. Muggles use things called doorbells. It's powered by electricity."

"What the hell is an eckeltricity?" The second voice screeched.

Following the argument, Mrs. Riddle heard the sound of feet shuffling and bodies shoving. She turned the TV off with a simple press of a bottom and pulled herself off of her husband's seat.

"What's the hold up lads?" A third voice interrupted the fighting. "We're going to be late for the World Cup if we don't get the girl soon."

"We know dad," the second voice spoke in annoyance, "we would be getting something done, if it weren't for Cedric and his dumb doorbell. What does it even look like anyway?"

"Um- they never taught us that in Muggle Studies."

Mrs. Riddle was nearly at the door when the bickering from the two boys behind the door started up again. She smiled to herself as her guests began to get louder and louder.

"Boys, stop with your bickering! The entire block of Muggles is going to hear us-" Mrs. Riddle swung the door open and found the family of three in a heaped mess. The two boys who she guessed were the ones making the racket were caught pulling on one another's clothes. Both of them had their hair in a jumble and were found utterly startled by the woman at the door. The two young boys who had close features to one another unhooked their grasps immediately. The taller one, who possessed a bundle of stunning looks, smoothed down his hair and smiled sincerely.

"You're the Diggory's, I assume." said Mrs. Riddle softly.

The man that Mrs. Riddle understood to be the father jumped in excitement his smile reaching either end of his face.

"Yes Madam. I'm Amos Diggory." Mr. Diggory didn't hesitate a moment to take the woman's hand and shake it with all his might. Mrs. Riddle smiled and stared at the two boys who tried very hard to be on their best behavior. Mr. Diggory caught the woman's glance and smiled pompously. "These two charming young boys are my sons. This one here is Cedric." He pulled the taller boy to his side and patted his sons back proudly.

Mrs. Riddle remembered the young wizard from earlier in the summer. Cedric Diggory was a handsome boy, almost the age of seventeen. He was not only polite and silent but had looks that men would kill to have. Mrs. Riddle remembered the handsome fellow as being one of her daughter's closest friends. Even though the boy was two years older than her own child, she liked the boy more than she should.

Soon enough, Mr. Diggory turn toward his other son. "And this one is Robert. He's in the same grade as your daughter." To designate the other boy, he simply pointed his finger. Mrs. Riddle didn't recognize the other one. He was a couple inches shorter than his brother and had wisped sun-bleach hair. He looked exactly the same as Cedric, as they both shared the same light blue eyes and hardened facial features. The only thing Mrs. Riddle could see that allowed her to tell the boys apart was the coldness of the younger boy's face. He didn't possess rosy cheeks like his brother but instead stood with sadistically narrowed eyes.

"It's a pleasure. I'm Cilia's mother, Elizabeth." Mrs. Riddle opened up her body to the house and extended her hand inward. "Well, come in please. I'll wake Cilia in the meantime. Would you all like to eat something before your trip, or have something to drink?"

"Maybe a small cup of coffee," said Mr. Diggory gladly.

The Diggory family strolled into the residence, their bags lugged over their shoulders as they made sure not to bump into anything too fragile. The lights on the first floor were blazing vibrantly and placed the folks into a sea of white. Mrs. Riddle walked deeper to the home and showed the family the living room, insisting them to sit.

"Ciel, sweetheart, get up!" yelled Mrs. Riddle from the bottom of the stairs. The woman didn't receive a single response from her daughter. Mrs. Riddle didn't bother herself too much; as she was sure her daughter was just having a hard time waking up. She turned back to her sitting guests and strutted to the living room. "It's nice to see you again Cedric. Cilia has been dying to see you all summer. She hasn't stopped talking about you, in fact."

Cedric blushed.

"I've been waiting all summer to see her too, Mrs. Popperlock."

Mrs. Riddle stopped clearing her tea from beside the seat she had previously sat in. Her head snapped toward the boys.

Mrs. Popperlock-how could she have forgotten? She still wasn't used to the name change. The only other time someone had bothered to call her Popperlock was when the young boy had come during the end of term. She wasn't accustomed to the fake name like her daughter was.

Mrs. Riddle recovered quickly with a smile and walked to the kitchen, before walking back to the family with a cup of black coffee. When Mr. Diggory received his cup, he made himself cozy on the French furniture.

"I've been telling you all year Ced, the two of you would make a good couple."

"Dad-" the boy warned.

Cedric was getting red faced again and tried to turn his head away from the adult's room so they wouldn't pick on him any longer. Both Amos and Elizabeth chuckled at the boy's reaction.

"You don't have to be embarrassed, Cedric. She _does_ like you…don't tell her I said anything, though," whispered Mrs. Riddle with a wink.

Cedric got even more embarrassed, but played it off with a chuckle. It was adorable to say the least. Finally, after a moment of awkward silence, Mrs. Riddle turned her head back toward the stairs that were still empty.

"Oh god, where is that girl? She's going to make you all late," mumbled Mrs. Riddle.

She edged back toward the stairs. "Ciel, come down dear!" she demanded.

"nnnhhh."

"What was that dear?" Ciel's mother questioned from the first floor.

Mrs. Riddle received no other response from her daughter. She sighed in an aggravated tone, getting all too worried that her daughter was going to cause the Diggory family to be late for the event they were planning on attending.

When Mrs. Riddle turned her attention back to her guests, she was startled to find Cedric standing right above her.

He smiled sincerely.

"If it's not a problem, I can go up there and wake her up." Cedric gave the young mother a friendly smile, almost begging for permission to get her daughter. She didn't want it to be a bother to the boy, since he was her guest after all, and she was supposed to accommodate him. As though the boy could read her mind, he gave her a pleasant look. "It seriously wouldn't be a bother to get her. Her bedroom's behind the second door to the right, isn't it?"

"Well yes but-"

"I'll bring her down, then."

Refusing to hear another word from the woman, Cedric dashed up the stairs quietly. He made sure to not make any noise, avoiding to wake Ciel's father in the process. Making it to the top of the stairs, Cedric found the 4th year dragging herself out of her room, clothes in hand.

Even though Ciel didn't look like it now, she was one of my most agile people Cedric had ever met. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that she was currently tripping over her own feet, but she wasn't exactly a morning person, as everyone knew.

Ciel had grown up since three years before. She was no longer the small little girl who wore dresses wherever she went. Ciel had grown up into more tight fitting clothes that accommodated her figure. She also arranged her wardrobe using the colors red, gold and black as a foundation for everything. Almost everything about Ciel's appearance had changed in the three years. She had always been short in height, and now used heels to extend her appearance. Her face had preserved its pale pinup complexion and her hair had darkened to look more like her father's. However, she still had long wild hair and dark eyes as she always had.

Still dozing, Ciel yawned and rubbed the sleep off her eyes. She wasn't yet aware of the boy watching her at the top of the stairs. Ciel blinked a few times and shuffled aimlessly toward the bathroom. The 4th year was too caught up in her sleep to comprehend exactly where she was going. She walked through the hall.

"Ciel you might want to-"

BOOM.

Ciel landed on the floor with a thud. She woke with a start and realized she had walked into the plastered wall right beside the bathroom. Cedric laughed, as Ciel looked at the wall, completely dazed. The girl whined and rubbed the sore on her head.

"I hope that woke you up," Cedric commented.

"Sort of," Ciel rubbed the sore a moment more and rolled to her stomach so she could push herself off the floor. "Why didn't you tell me I was going to run into a wall?"

"I tried," laughed Cedric.

Ciel's mouth fell open to argue, but she was cut off as Cedric pulled her into an affectionate embrace.

The two of them were best friends ever since her second year at the school and they had bonded right away. At first the only thing the two had found in common was their love for Quidditch. Ciel had been put on the Quidditch team that year for Gryffindor, one of the four houses at the school, and Cedric was envious that she had received a position on the team.

"Are you packed yet?" Cedric asked.

He pulled the two of their bodies off of one another and couldn't contain his excitement.

"Sort of kinda'. I have a few more things I need to stuff into my bag. Let me go change, I'll meet you in my room."

When Ciel was dressed, she went down the hall into her room. It was the complete opposite of what the rest of the house looked like. Nothing was organized in the same way as the living room or the kitchen. Random books lay all over the room, some open on her undid bed, some on the floor and drawers. Single sheets of paper from the _Daily Prophet_ were shattered about, their pictures moving on a continuous repeat. A cassette of Muggle music was playing softly in the background, as some toys from Zonko's Joke Shop flew over head.

Ciel was stunned that Cedric managed to find somewhere to sit under all of her clutter. He sat with his hands on his lap, his eyes looking over the red and gold covering the walls, completely ignoring all of the Zonko's products wreaking havoc on the room.

"Nice room," he commented lightly. "It's the same way I imagine a Gryffindor would have their room set up. Is this a chocolate egg-"

"Don't touch that!" Ciel snatched the egg of out Cedric's hand before he tried to taste it. Cedric gave her a confused look as she tossed the invention near a pile of broken Zonko's toys. "That is a Canary Cream, Ced. It's a Weasley product; the twins sent me a lot of their stuff to test out."

The Weasley twins were the very reason Ciel happened to get into trouble. Her first year at Hogwarts had been prank free. She would observe most of the things the Twins did on their spare time and didn't try to get involved with the older boys, but as soon as she had become Chaser, the boys had been onto her like leaches. She didn't mind the two gingers; they were nice to her and funny, and she loved to take risky chances with them when it came to their pranks. They were both her closest friends and tended to take advantage of her willingness to do things.

"A Weasley product," Cedric wasn't surprised: he was well aware of Ciel's friendship with the school's troublemakers. "Why do _you_ test those things out anyway?"

"Because it's fun," Ciel put it simply.

Cedric shook his head. She ignored him and hurried across her room, grabbing anything she could find to put into her bag.

The Diggory's were taking her to the World Cup, the Quidditch Tournament. Neither one of the adolescents could hold in their enthusiasm. Ciel was supporting Bulgaria. It wasn't that she thought they were the better team; she was just obsessed with their Seeker, Viktor Krum.

"Should I bring my poster of Krum?" Ciel jumped franticly with excitement. Just the possibility of meeting Viktor Krum brought butterflies to her stomach.

"You can bring it if you want," said Cedric, annoyed. "You probably won't even meet the bloke anyway."

Ciel knew why he was so bitter over the Bulgarian Seeker: it wasn't because she was crushing hard on the guy, but it was because of the fact that she wasn't supporting his team. Cedric was cheering for Ireland, the team Bulgaria was playing against. Ciel didn't have anything against the Irish; they were good, but she liked Krum's team a lot more.

"Don't be bitter Ceddy," teased Ciel.

"I'm not bitter."

Ciel dropped the conversation as soon as she stuffed the last thing into her backpack. When she was finished packing her things; Cedric and her want back to the first floor of the residency. Ciel's mother was sitting opposite of Mr. Diggory, listening quietly as Mr. Diggory chattered gleefully.

Robert was the only one omitted from the living room. Cedric seemed to have had a good idea of where his brother was and dragged Ciel to the kitchen. Robert Diggory was leaned over the countertop, his nose inches away from the metal toaster.

"Rob what are you doing?" asked Ciel.

The Slytherin student didn't look away from the object. Robert was thinking. It looked like hard work. Finally when the bread was done, it shot up, somehow allowing Robert to look away from it.

"I don't get it," said Robert, stumped.

"What is it you don't get?"

"How is it that when you put the bread in, you get something completely different when it comes out? The bread is all toasty."

Ciel was paralyzed with laughter. She covered her mouth with her hand, to drown out the sound of her laughing.

Robert had no idea how much Ciel loved him in situations like these. A toaster seemed so prosaic to her; even Cedric, who had taken Muggle Studies in school, knew the function of a toaster. Robert on the other hand, being a Slytherin student, hadn't bothered to invest his time in Muggle Studies, and was thus left completely helpless when it came to Muggle things.

Robert's ears went pink.

"Stop laughing! I was just wondering. All these Muggle inventions are completely weird; it would be a whole lot simpler if you all were to use magic."

"Muggles _can't_ use magic." Cedric said coldly.

Robert narrowed his eyes. Both Ceil and Cedric knew he wasn't that thick.

"Like hell, I know that, but all this eckeltricity stuff is just plain out stupid!"

"Sweetie, it's pronounced electricity not eckeltricity," Ciel spoke lightly.

Robert whipped his head back like a girl. Cedric's giggles filled the room. He disregarded the foul murmurs his brother was making and took hold of Ciel's hand, dragging her into the living room where both their parents sat.

Ciel watched both of the adults turn toward them. Her ears turn pink instantly. She hated the attention she got whenever she was with Cedric. She _did_ fancy him a bit, but the unwanted attention was too much.

"I see you got her up alright Ced," chuckled Mr. Diggory. "Good morning, Ciel," greeted Mr. Diggory.

"Good morning, Mr. Diggory- Morning, mum."

Ciel departed from Cedric's hold and strode swiftly to her mother's side. She placed a good-morning kiss on her soft cheek and made sure the bag she was hurling didn't knock over any of the priceless antiques that previously belonged to her grandparents.

"I see the two of you are ready to leave, then," said Mr. Diggory

"Yes Sir," said Ciel.

Mr. Diggory beamed at her.

"It's best we get a move on, then. We have a long walk to make- Robert stop staring at the bread toasting machine-we should really get going."

Robert popped his head out of the kitchen. He had a piece of toast dangling from his mouth, while his hand held on to another piece that had been layered with jam.

"Is it Quidditch time?" asked Robert, with his mouth full.

Mr. Diggory laughed and rose from his seat, leaving his empty cup of coffee on the cozies beside him.

"Ha-ha, I knew that would catch the lad's attention. Let's get a move on; I want more than enough time to pack the camp up once we get there."

Everyone moved toward the door. The Diggory's huddled together, while Ciel paced slowly behind. She wanted to savor the last moment she had with her mom before she left.

When Ciel and her mother made it to the door the young Gryffindor threw her arms around her mom.

"I'll see you after I come back from the World Cup." Mrs. Riddle squeezed her daughter tightly. She agreed with her and nodded her head simply.

"I hope you have fun with your friends. Bring back a souvenir if you can."

"I'll get you something really cool mum, don't worry." Mrs. Riddle giggled.

Ciel found Cedric's hand being extended toward her. She took it with confidence and allowed her friend to pull her toward the door. She was ready to enjoy a day with all the Quidditch she could stand. She was ready to have fun, but a thought stopped her before she could pass though the door.

Ciel turned around.

"Mum, can you tell dad I'll miss him?" Ciel spoke seriously.

Mrs. Riddle's mouth hung open in shock, but she soon closed it and nodded her head gently toward her daughter.

It was hard for Ciel to live with her father ever since he found out. She knew he loved her, there was no doubt about it, but ever since that August day three years ago, she felt her father didn't want to be around her, like he didn't care for her the same way he used to.

"I'll tell your father in the morning, sweetie. Now off you go. Have fun."

Cedric pulled on her arm again, this time managing to pull her out of the residency. Ciel watched her mother wave bye to them from the door before closing it.

Ceil and the Diggory's walked into the deserted city street. Rain from the previous night had done a number of things to the streets. The road was sleek with water and the streetlights burned brightly. The sun had chosen to revile its self, giving the birds another reason to sing louder. It reminded Ciel of the early morning Quidditch practices Oliver Wood forced her and the team to do during her second year. She hated those practices just like everyone – well, except for Oliver, that is - but she could say that she enjoyed the freshness of the air right in the morning.

"Mr. Diggory," said Ciel quickly, as they stopped in the middle of the road, about a block away from her house, "how exactly are we going to get to the World Cup?"

"We'll be apparating to our home and then from there we will hike up to the hills to find the Portkey."

Ciel nodded hesitantly. She wasn't too keen about the whole apparating thing, nor was she used to the Portkey idea. She had never done either one of them previously and had only read about them in books, but going through something first hand was completely different from just listening to theory.

"You're going to apparate all of us?" asked Cedric, shocked. "Isn't that a little too much for you, dad?"

"Nonsense my boy. It's perfectly all right. I'm sure we can make it. Of course it would be much easier once you've passed that bleeding apparition test, but no big deal, Ced."

Cedric remained unsure.

"Only if you're sure, dad."

"Everyone grab on to my arm," announced Mr. Diggory. Both of the Diggory boys grabbed on to Mr. Diggory's arm instantaneously. Ciel paused; she wasn't familiar with this form of apparition. She was the last one to take hold of Mr. Diggory's arm. "Apparating is a quick way to get to a destination. Have you apparated before dear?"

Ciel smiled weakly. "No, but I've read about it in a few books."

"Just don't puke," warned Rob.

"What do you mean don't-" Before Ciel could think about finishing her sentence, she felt Mr. Diggory's arm twist away from her. The next thing Ciel knew, everything turned black, and her body was being morphed and twisted in all sorts of directions. She couldn't breathe; it was as though someone had his or her hand around her slim neck, pressing hard to cut off the circulation from her breathing. Her head began to pound furiously and her ear popped, and then-

She gasped and doubled over to the floor, her lungs inhaling warm air. Her heart was racing in her chest; it took her a moment or so to wind up the energy to flutter her eyes open. It took her a few seconds before she realized she was no longer back in her neighborhood. The Diggory's and herself were standing on rich green grass right beside a river. They had landed safely beside some bushes and were close enough to a small red bridge that allowed walkers to cross the river. The scenery was beautiful and so natural looking that Ciel would have taken some time to appreciate it if it hadn't dawned to her that she felt like she had to vomit.

"Are you doing alright dear?" asked Mr. Diggory, looking down at her sympathetically. "The feeling takes some time to get used to, but it will all pass in time."

"I feel like I'm going to puke," choked Ciel.

Cedric laughed and got down on his knees to push the hair out of her face. He chose to sit beside her just in case she did barf. She appreciated his help and tried to take deeps breaths from her nose. The turning of her stomach settled slightly.

"Do you want us to wait here with you till it passes?" questioned Mr. Diggory.

"Don't bother dad, I'll stay with her."

Cedric continued to hold up her hair and gave her concerned glances. She held her stomach and tried to focus only breathing, but it was hard to when Cedric's scent was lingering by her nose.

Mr. Diggory glanced at the two sitting on the floor. Ciel saw he was wearing a satisfied expression. He loved the fact that two of them were together.

"I'll see you in the house, then. Come on Rob-oh that boy, can't hold in his excitement, can he?" Mr. Diggory chased after his youngest son, who hadn't bothered to stick around for Ciel's sake.

Cedric stroked Ciels' hair a few times.

"You shouldn't feel too embarrassed about this, the same thing happened to me my first time. You get used to the feeling after a while."

"I'm going to stick to flying."

Ciel gagged again. She was sure he wasn't aware of how embarrassed she was. He removed his hand from her hair and went scavenging through the bag he had taken with him. Once he found what he was looking for he skipped to the edge of the small river. It wasn't long before he came back from the bank; his hand and the canteen he had taken from his bag were soaked with water.

"Some water should help with your stomach."

"Thank you." Ciel sipped on the water. It washed down the sickening feeling in her belly and made her feel better. Ciel brought her body close to her knees and drank slowly. Cedric took a seat beside her. She watched him stare at the running water beside them. The sun was slowly beginning to awaken.

"How's your summer been?" asked Cedric.

"Er-fine, I guess. Dad still doesn't like the whole magic thing. He doesn't even want to be anywhere around you guys, like having powers is some type of disease. As you can see, mum is fine with anything." Ceil whispered. When she looked up from the floor, she found that Cedric's full attention was on her. He brushed his light hair out of his eyes and chuckled in embarrassment.

"How's your summer treating you?"

"Decent. All dad's been doing is going on about is about the Quidditch game against Gryffindor. Rob is-Rob and mum, the same as always."

Ciel found it silly that Cedric was unconsciously messing with his hair. It was a bad habit of his.

When Ciel finished the water she tossed the canteen to the ground and tackled her friend to the floor. She felt the two of their bodies plummet to the soft grass. Cedric gave her a funny look. He was on the bottom, his back pressed to the floor. She, on the other hand, rested her hand on his pectorals, smiling to herself whenever his muscles tensed under her.

Cedric smiled widely but had his eyes closed. An arm snaked around her waist and forced her to stay in place.

"I see you're feeling better."

Cedric peaked an eye open. She couldn't stop herself from giggling loudly.

"Yes sir, I'm as healthy as a hippogriff." At that moment she felt happier than she had been all summer; she had missed him more than he could believe and it was soothing to be in his company. Ciel felt Cedric shift under her, the hand that was positioned securely on her waist began to pet her head.

"I've been up since two, I need a quick nap."

"What time did you go to bed?" asked Ciel. She lifted her head off of his chest and watched, as he remained to keep his eyes shut.

He yawned.

"Around midnight. I wouldn't be surprised if Rob didn't sleep at all. He was using the floo network all night, wouldn't shut up in fact."

The sun branched out from behind the hills. Neither one bothered to get off of the ground and leave the empty field. Ciel watched as nature all around them woke up with the sun hanging in the air. Until Ciel was sure they had wasted enough time just sitting around, she got up trying to pull Cedric up with her.

"Your dad is waiting for us. Let's go Cedric," whined Ciel. Her pulling and tugging didn't help to move Cedric. "Ceddy, get up."

"Nnnhhh."

"Ced-why are you so heavy- get up." Ciel yanked so hard on Cedric's arm, that when her arm slipped off of his grasp she tumbled to the floor.

"Are you calling me fat?" said Cedric.

"Yeah…terribly fat…atrocious. Hell, you might be even fatter than that Crabbe kid in Slytherin. Now get up!" said Ciel.

She was back on her feel tugging on him once more. When Ciel finally managed to get Cedric to cooperate, they hiked through the vain like hills. It wasn't a difficult journey through the countryside; they made light jokes and bumped into one another playfully. At last they reached the Diggory home, and it didn't take a long conversation with Cedric's mother to find out that Mr. Diggory and Robert had left in search for the Portkey.

"'course," said Ciel abruptly as they journeyed toward the location the Portkey and Cedric's family. "They just had to leave us like that. I bet this is all Robert's fault, that boy is horrible at being patient; your father should honestly discipline him more. If I had a son like that I would…"

Her voice trailed away helplessly.

Mr. Diggory was already in sight at the top of the hill, his arms waving in the air to catch their attention. When they reached the top of Stoatshead Hill to meet Mr. Diggory, they threw their heavy bags on the ground, huffing in relief.

"There you are, you two. Are you feeling any better?"

Ciel nodded gently. Mr. Diggory smiled proudly and clasped a hand over his son's shoulder. "Glad to see that Ced is about to take care of you-Rob found the Portkey- at least that boy is good for something- Oh I think that's the Weasley's now."

Mr. Diggory was, in fact, right. From the distance, a blob of bright red marched toward their direction.

Ciel recognized every Weasley in the pack. The twins were Fred and George, the real troublemakers of Hogwarts. The other boy, tall, thin and full of freckles was Ron. The only girl was Ginny, with her flaming red hair. Walking up the hill with the Weasley's were two teenagers who didn't share the bright ginger tint in their hair. A girl with thick knotty hair and big brown eyes lugged her bag the same way Ciel had earlier. She was Hermoine Granger, one of Ciel's roommates-the only one she truly liked out of the four girls she shared a room with. The other one with the Weasley's was a small boy with glasses. The boy with the black hair and swirling green eyes was Harry Potter- or as most knew him- the boy who lived.

When the group managed to make it up the hill in one piece, Mr. Diggory greeted Mr. Weasley with a firm handshake. All of the kids gathered together in a group, greeting one another with simple glances and hellos.

"Ciel!" said Fred, elbowing Cedric out of his way and taking hold of her shoulder. "How's our favorite little chaser doing-"

"You look quite stunning you know," said George, pushing Fred off of her and seizing Ciel around the shoulder the way his brother had.

Ciel didn't really mind the twins' behaviors: she hadn't seen either one of them since term had ended and seeing them both in person made her joyful.

"I'm your favorite- I like that- you should call me that more often," said Ciel.

"Sure-Toffee?" said Fred brightly.

He held out a deliciously looking toffee in his hand and gave her an encouraging look.

"They really are good; even ask Harry's cousin, couldn't control himself now could he?" said George with a laugh.

Ciel was about to pop the candy in her mouth when Hermione leaned over and snatched it from her hand, throwing it to the floor.

"That isn't funny Fred, who knows how long it's going to take to help her after she takes that." scolded Hermione, wagging her finger like an angry parent.

"Come on Granger, it's a joke, we know how to reverse it."

"Was this one of those Tongue Toffee's you owled me about once?" asked Ciel. She was sure she remembered the boys owling her something about some type of Toffee they were working on. She wondered if this was it.

Fred and George shared an innocent look.

"Maybe-"

The Twins exploded with laughter. Ciel rolled her eyes and hit them both on their arms. When the boys settled down their laughter, the father came to interrupt their little reunion.

"It's nearly time to get going, you lot," warned Mr. Weasley, holding a Portkey in his hand. "Don't forget: you just need to touch the Portkey. A finger will do."

Automatically, they moved into circle around Mr. Weasley. Everyone had their belongings over their shoulders and did their very best to squeeze in together around the old boot. It was difficult to fit eleven people around it.

They stood in a tight circle as a chilly breeze glided over them. No one dared to say anything, but the twins did their best to stop from giggling out loud. It took no time at all for the adults to begin their soft countdown, but when Mr. Weasley made it to one, the Portkey came into effect instantly.

Ciel felt as though a hook had grabbed on to her navel and was jerking her forward. She felt her feet rise from the air and Fred and George's shoulders on either side of her. The sensation of moving forward with the Portkey was much more reassuring than the Apparition, but she still hated the sensation. The Portkey was pulling her onward and onward and then-

She slammed into something rather odd. She had expected to hit the ground. Instead, she found herself sitting uncomfortably right on top of George's back, with the Weasley face down in the grass. Ciel looked up. Harry had landed right beside the Portkey, while the other Weasleys seemed to have fallen on the hard floor as well. The only ones still standing were Mr. Weasley, Mr. Diggory and Cedric.

Fred lifted his head out of the grass.

"For someone so small, you're pretty heavy."

"Shut up, Fred," growled Ciel through her teeth.

She climbed off of the Weasley and helped hoist him off of the floor. George snickered and received a playful punch from his brother.

It took everyone a moment to collect themselves from the fall and to start walking once more. Everyone followed the two adults, as they marched a quarter of a mile to the campsite. After the twenty minute walk to the campsite, the Weasley's and the Diggory's parted ways toward their own tents. Ceil said her good-byes and followed Mr. Diggory and his sons.

Walking though the campsite, Ciel couldn't find anything bad to say about it. The region was packed with hundreds and hundreds of people, all coming from different directions. She suddenly felt the excitement for the Cup as people marched to support either Ireland or Bulgaria. The sight was spectacular.

"Ciel! Ciel! Over here, Ciel!"

Ciel shot her head up and saw Cassiopeia Stonner, a pure blood Slytherin, galloping through the crowd of people. She sprinted down to meet the group, her violent black hair slapping behind her in the process.

Cassie was a cute girl, around the age of fifteen. She had legs made for a dancer and eyes just as green as Harry's. She could have in fact been his twin, if it weren't for the structure of her face. Her face was more pointed at the chin and gave her an almost snotty expression, but she was actually far from being arrogant. Even though she had been placed in the Slytherin house, there was almost something about her that made her seem unfit for it. It was her lack of self-preservation that caused her to stand out from the others. That trait alone had brought Ciel, Cedric and herself to become a click.

"I thought you would never make it- hi Cedric- do you have any idea how long I've had to wait till you showed up?"

"I didn't even know you were coming to the World Cup," said Ciel slowly.

"I know. I wasn't planning on it. Mum made me come, something about family bonding- oh who cares," Cassiopeia said with a grin. "So, when did you guys get here?"

Ciel and Cedric both shared a look, and then they grinned. "Around a half hour ago, we took a Portkey." Cedric explained simply.

Cassiopeia jumped in excitement.

"We did too."

"We?" asked Cedric.

"The Malfoy's and myself…we're sharing a tent with them- it was our father's idea." Cassie explained.

Ciel noted the look on Cassiopeia's face. She wasn't proud of the fact that she had to stay with Draco Malfoy, the most known Slytherin at Hogwarts. Just mentioning the Slytherin made the Gryffindor sick. Ciel hated him more than words were able to express. He was just an annoying git in her eyes, a person she tried her best to avoid.

The same couldn't be said with Robert. The very prescience of Draco's name let the boy's face up.

"Malfoy's already here?"

"Yeah, Rob; you can see your _boyfriend_." Cassiopeia teased with a wink. Robert gave her a nasty look. "I have no idea why my father decided we should come so early. We got here a few hours ago, oddly. Dad said he had to discuss _plans_ with some people from the ministry."

"That sounds cheerful," Cedric muttered coldly to Cassiopeia.

Cassiopeia's face suddenly erupted to a smile. She leaned over and gripped Ciel's hands tugging both of them at the same time. "You should stay in the minister's box with us. You might get to meet-"

"Viktor Krum?" Ciel cut her off.

Cassie didn't have to respond for Ciel to know it was exactly who she was talking about. Ciel adored Viktor Krum and didn't care how much she embarrassed her friends when she freaked out over him. To her, he was the most amazing Quidditch Seeker in the world no matter what anyone else said.

"I'm telling you. Come over, like right now-Robert you should come too- You're going to flip out when you see the tent, believe me."

Even with Cassie speaking quickly, everyone seemed to get what she was saying in the end. Going to her tent for a moment didn't seem like such a big deal, if it were only a few moments then sure, but Ciel feel nervous going. Draco and his family were staying there too, and she knew exactly how his family viewed Muggle-borns, and she could just imagine the things he and his family would say if she dared step on their property.

"Are you sure it's alright if I come?" Ciel asked worried, "you know how the Malfoy's are- you know how Draco is- I don't even think they'll let me inside the place."

Cassie swatted the air.

"We'll be in and out before he notices. Come on Ciel- Rob, please." Cassiopeia gave both of them a pout.

Robert didn't give his attention. They both knew he was going to agree: he wasn't going to let go of the opportunity to hang out with Malfoy, not matter what happened. Ciel realized the decision depended solely on her.

"I-I don't think-"

"I hope you two weren't trying to leave now. We still haven't gone to the tent yet." Mr. Diggory spoke sternly.

Ciel's body turned stale. She hadn't understood how much of a mess she had gotten herself into.

"Oh come on, Dad, you have to be bloody joking, I haven't seen Malfoy all summer!" erupted Robert.

No one was too surprised by the outburst. Ciel, Cedric, and Cassiopeia all shared the same look. They were all aware of Robert's anger issue, especially when it came to his father.

Mr. Diggory turned pink in embarrassment.

"Robert, I think it's more of a priority to get settled down. Cassie can come and get you after we've done that." Mr. Diggory tried to explain calmly.

"But dad-" Robert roared.

Some people walking by began to stare. Cedric turned stiff.

"He's been waiting all summer, dad," said Cedric softly. "Ciel and Cassie are responsible enough to make him come back. I think you should let them go for a little bit. I'm sure the girls won't do anything wrong."

The look on Mr. Diggory's face made Ciel believe he fell for his sons words. She knew anything Cedric said to his father would automatically be approved but she still felt sick to her stomach. She hated how Cedric was making excuses up for them.

Mr. Diggory gazed at both her and his son. He was struggling for words.

"Very well-but don't stay long. Just go and say hi, I don't want to come looking for you, understand-"

Robert dashed off before his father had yet finished speaking. Mr. Diggory sighed and glanced at the girls worriedly.

"Promise me you'll bring him to the tent."

"We solemnly swear," said Ciel and Cassiopeia at the same time.

Before any more could be said the two friends sprinted after Robert in attempts to bring him to the right tent. When Ciel and Cassie managed to catch up to Robert they voyaged through the mounds of people and tents to make it to Cassiopeia's estate. It wasn't a long journey to the large tent but the thing stood out more than Ciel had expected it to.

"What do you think, awesome, right," said Cassie, gloating slightly, "Mr. Malfoy doesn't think it's good enough though, he's trying to upgrade us to something a lot bigger- nothing is good enough for the family, I guess-"

"So your finally back from hell, hu, Stonner."

There would have been no way in the world; Ciel would have mistaken that voice for another. She dared, not to look up, but cursed herself when she did.

Draco Malfoy stood leaned again the nearby wall, his pale arms crossed over his chest. He wore his signature expression. They all knew Draco was just trying to act high and mighty.

Ceil watched the blonde as he finally realized she too was with the others. His gray eyes fell upon her, as his lips curled to a sadistic smirk. Ciel was glad he didn't give her his attention for very long.

She shivered slightly. She couldn't stand the way he looked as though he was planning a way to kill her like she was some sort of lamb.

Draco glanced back at Cassie, his dark smile warming up.

"I think this is a new low for you Cassiopeia, who would have thought you would bring back some Mudblood trash. I wonder what your father would say if he saw her." Malfoy's eyes flickered back to Ciel for a moment. She wasn't shocked that he wasn't trying to mask his hatred for her. He never bothered to, not even in school.

Cassiopeia shot Malfoy a nasty look.

"Good afternoon to you too Draco. Where's my mum?"

"Exactly where she was when you left," said Malfoy with a sneer. "Are you just going to stand there, Diggory, or were you planning on moving anytime soon?" Robert nodded his head like a puppy and fallowed Draco as he shrank back into the shadows of the tent.

Ciel felt like someone hit her with a stunning spell. She wasn't sure how to react to the unwanted Pureblood. Ciel and Cassiopeia shared a look, the two shaking their heads at the same time.

"He's such an annoying git," mumbled Ciel

"Yeah, try being in the same house as him." Ciel nodded in agreement. "Well, come on let me find my dad we can see if you can sit with us in the minister's box."

Cassiopeia snatched Ciel by the wrist and tugged her through the shadows through which Robert and Malfoy had disappeared. They didn't say in the dark for long, before Ciel knew it she was blinded by intense lights.

She had to blink a few times before she realized she was still standing in the same hall Cassiopeia had dragged her through. They hadn't rid themselves of Draco or Robert. They were standing at the frame of a door, neither one spoke but the sound of laughter erupted from the location they were looking in.

Malfoy peered over his shoulder for a moment.

"Mother," Draco called, his head snapping back to the inside of the room. The laughter from within stopped. "If you wonder what that stench is, you should know that Stonner decided to drag in some Mudblood trash into the tent."

As if the situation couldn't get any worse, Malfoy stepped aside so the two women sitting gossiping with one another could see Ciel.

The blonde woman with the snotty expression resembled Draco. She had similar blue-gray eyes as her son and the same bleakness to the skin. She looked as though she had been living in the 40s all her life and didn't know it was really the 90s.

The other woman at the table had black hair and fair skin and looked just like Cassie. It was the first time Ciel had ever met Mrs. Stonner, who shared an odd resemblance to Draco's mother. They were both pale and had the same eyes, yet Mrs. Stonner's sense of fashion was more modern. She wore a deep green knee high dress and matched it off with a silver snake ring on her finger. Mrs. Stonner sat at the table bare foot, her shoes kicked off under the table. A small red bird was printed on her ankle, but it wasn't too noticeable, unlike the tattoo placed on her wrist that had the numbers 1979 imprinted darkly.

Both women simultaneously gave Ciel the same horrid look.

"Dear, why is the muggle-born in the tent?" said Mrs. Stonner. She slid her slender hand with the snake ring over the top of the table.

Cassis quickly shoved Ciel out of her mother's sight.

"We're just passing buy to talk to dad." Cassie explained quickly.

"Couldn't you have just left _it_ outside?" said Mrs. Malfoy. Ciel noticed her lean over the table and beaming at Mrs. Stonner. Christmas had come early for the two of them.

Mrs. Malfoy's face grew with delight.

"Didn't you do that once Lyra with poor old Sirius? You just left him outside like some sort of _dog_."

"With nothing but his trousers? Yes, I remember that well, Cissy," said Mrs. Stonner fluidly. She turned back to her daughter. "Well dear, maybe you should listen to Narcissa, she and Lucius did get the tent for the two of our families- it's best you follow her rules."

"Sorry, we'll be out in a minute."

Cassie dragged Ciel away from the mothers as fast as she could before either one of them managed to say anything again. The two of them could hear the snickering coming from the boys. Even with the two of them gone, the mothers' gossiping was still heard loudly.

"I can't believe you allow such behaviors, Lyra. If your mother heard you do that, she would disown you faster than a blink of an eye."

"She's still a child," said Mrs. Stonner softly. "Cassie believes everyone can be her friend no matter _what_ they are."

"Well _I've_ taught Draco much better with he was younger, right darling-"

"Don't listen to the two of them," Cassiopeia cut Mrs. Malfoy off. "Mum only said that, because we're around the Malfoy's."

"I don't see how _that's_ difference," Ciel muttered.

She stopped walking and sighed. She hated hearing the laughing and the comments always coming from Purebloods. So what if she wasn't pure like they were, that didn't make her any less of a witch.

"What happened in 79 anyway?" Ciel asked, trying to get her negative thoughts out of her mind.

Cassiopeia jerked.

"Wha-oh that was the year Regulus died." Ciel looked at her vacantly. "Regulus Black and mum were close growing up- 'course she was a year older than his brother Sirius- they still got along just fine."

Ciel gasped unconsciously. Her brain still wasn't functioning right. It was hard for her to piece together the names Regulus Black and Sirius. Cassie gasped and turned pink. "I'm guessing I never mentioned that I'm part of the Black family."

"What gave that away?" Ciel spat.

She opened her mouth to protest and then-

BOOM!

Both girls jumped. They were sure something had broken. They could both hear violent yelling coming from a room a few doors down. Ciel's heart quickened furiously. The way the yelling came, it sounded like someone was being tortured to death.

"Lucius, LUCIUS!"

The man yelling was trying to catch the attention of whoever Lucius was. Cassiopeia turned green. Ciel knew she must have known who was yelling. Her Gryffindor instinct seemed to get the better of her. She suddenly got very interested in what was happening in that room that was causing the racket.

Ciel moved slowly toward the noise.

"Ciel get back here," Cassie demanded in a whisper.

She ignored her and crept steadily toward the room, the sound of men's voices echoing off the walls. She made sure not to be seen as she pressed her back against the ridged wall, listening carefully from the frame of the door. Where Ciel stood, she could make out some figures from within.

A group of five or six men sat around a table, dressed all about the same way, fancy robes and the snotty expression to go with them. They all looked angry, except for one of the people panting on the floor; he was on all fours sweating heavily, coughing blood in the process.

Cassiopeia slithered over to Ciel's sides; she was shaking nervously. Ciel assumed her father was one of the people in the room, but she couldn't make out which one he was. She peered in again and got a better look of the men at the table. A thin, blonde male was raised, his long hair in a tangled mess. He had his wand in his hand and was panting ferociously. He must have been Lucius.

"Get up Crabbe," Lucius hissed though his grinding teeth. The man who was on all fours, whimper but didn't stand. "GET UP-"

"Everyone needs to calm down, not a single one of us is in any danger as of yet. We all just need to take a seat-Lucius take a seat- and let's just talk like civilize beings." Lucius snapped his head toward a light haired man at the table. Angrily, Lucius slid his wand out of sight. He sat down roughly beside the man that had spoken.

Cassiopeia's breathing got heavy. Ciel was sure the light haired man was her father. He didn't look much like her; his hair color reminded her of Professor Lupin's, the Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher, from the previous year. He didn't look like the type of person who could have worked at the Ministry of Magic. Ciel tried not to stare at him for long but she noticed the same silver snake ring on his finger- the same ring his wife had.

"Now Crabbe," Mr. Stonner spoke with such grace. "We don't want to get Lucius angry again, now do we? Stand up like a good boy and take your seat."

Without question, Crabbe pulled himself off the ground and took his rightful chair. He wiped the blood off of his face and stared at his lap. Mr. Stonner smirked. "Now I want to remind everyone in this room that mistakes are not taken for granted here. If our master were to hear how much of TRAITORS you all are the punishments you receive here will be nothing compared what will happen to you." Everyone, including the two girls out in the hall held their breaths. Neither one of them had any idea what they were discussing, but something in Ciel's gut made her sure this wasn't anything to do with 'work.' "Tonight we can't make any errors- Crabbe, Goyle, don't do anything stupid."

"They always do something stupid," muttered Lucius.

Mr. Stonner shot the blonde a look. "Don't give me that look Allen, so what if they get caught, our lord won't punish us."

Mr. Stonner looked furious as his knuckles turned white. "If those two are caught, we're all caught." He looked at the other men in the room. "The ministry already keeps tabs on what happens in the court rooms. I –as you all know -have access to all of them. One more _accusation_ like last time and you'll definitely be thrown into Azkaban _without_ a trial."

"Then we won't be caught. We can disapp-"

"Allen, we have unexpected guests."

Ciel felt her heart drop to her stomach.

Immediately, everyone in the room snapped their heads in the direction of the door. They caught sight of both Ciel and Cassiopeia pressed against the wall. With anger filling his face, Mr. Stonner shot up like a missile.

"Cassiopeia," her father growled through his teeth. "How many times have I told you not to interrupt me when I'm in a meeting?"

Cassie stepped away from the door; she was still quivering.

"Sorry dad, I just wanted to ask you something," said Cassiopeia.

"Couldn't you just have asked your mother," said Mr. Stonner, annoyed.

By the expression on his face, the two girls knew he was desperate to get rid of the two of them. Ciel stood quietly. She noticed that the only one paying her any attention was Lucius. He was puzzled as he stared at her eyes leveled to narrow slits.

"I know who this one is," chuckled Lucius. He looked like as though he had won Witches Weakly's best smile award. "Miss. Popperlock, Draco's told me many things about you…Muggle-born."

The others around hissed, muttering comments about Muggle-borns under their breath. Ciel was now sure that Lucius was Draco's father.

Mr. Stonner's expression darkened. Lucius looked like he was having the time of his life. He shot Mr. Stonner a sassy look. "You never told us, your daughter had a Muggle born as a friend, Allen."

"What's the Mudblood doing in here?" hissed Mr. Stonner.

"I just wanted to know if she could come to the minister's box with us during the game."

"The minister's box! What makes you think the minister wants her in his box?" asked Mr. Stonner bitterly.

Cassie didn't bother to answer her father's question.

"Get the Mudblood out of my sigh, now," he muttered, turning back around to the others in the room.

Cassie muttered an apology and snatched Ciel's hand, dragging her as far away from the room as she could manage.

"What do you suppose they were talking about?" whispered Ciel.

"Don't even bother trying to figure it out. It's just Ministry stuff."

"Yeah, that sounded like a lot more than ministry stuff. I can tell you that much-"

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><p><strong>Chapter 2, I know it was very long, but I'm glad you finished it. This took me forever to write, since there was so much information that I wanted to get out there. I hope you liked the story, so if you did <em>review<em>, if you hated it _still review_. I want to know what you think that could make this story better, or what you guys things. I am also intrested to see what you guys think will happen next and how each character might have somethign to do with the plot...you dont have to do this. Either way review please :) **

**I hope you wait for Chapter 3**

**REVIEW FEEDBACK:**

**Black Silver Roses: thank you so much for the review and believe me it only gets more intresting from this point on ;)**

**EmilyMalfoy: I'm happy you liked the first chapter. I will try and update as much as I can.**


	3. Death Eaters

_A/N: Thank you all for the support on this story. I am here to announce that my beautiful and helpful beta itsalljustalie is going on vacation, so if anyone is intrested in becoming my new beta until she returns, that would be awesome. PM me if you want the job :) Also you guys are allowed to ask questions in either a PM or a review if you think there is something you dont understand. In fact, I demand you ask questions, just so I understand what I need to explain better when I am writing the next few. Enjoy the story..._

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><p>Chapter Three:<p>

**Death Eaters**

To Ciel's convenience, the minutes spent in the Malfoy tent were short lived. She and Cassiopeia spent their remaining time before the game catching up with the Weasley twins.

The small group sat outside, right beneath the sun. It was humid and they were sure a storm would roll around during the night.

Ciel, Cassiopeia, Fred and George all tried to move as little as possible. The heat was butchering them, but despite the heat, Ciel was quite glad to be able to be spending some time relaxing.

Both Fred and George lounged themselves on the grass. Fred was sprawled out on his back. He was dripping sweat from the humidity. He had a hand held in the air so the sun wouldn't blind him. Cassiopeia was laid out the same way. Unlike the Weasley, she fanned herself with her hand. The other Weasley, George, sat cross-legged right beside his brother. He sat still as Ciel braided his hair, as a distraction. She had just finished explaining to them the sort of things Mrs. Malfoy had said to her earlier.

"Why didn't you sock that ugly brute in the face?" exclaimed Fred.

He lifted his hand away from his eyes to look at Ciel better, but ended up regretting it in the end. He dropped his hand back in place.

Ciel sighed and wiped the sweat building up on her forehead.

"I couldn't do anything. I was in their tent; she had the right do whatever she wanted."

"So what?" started Fred.

He lifted his body.

"The lady just called you a you-know-what, you can't just sit there and take it!"

Ciel groaned and unhooked her fingers from the George's curls. She hated being babied by people; she knew exactly how to run her life.

"Georgie," whined Ciel.

She wrapped her arms around the boy beside her.

"Tell Fred to stay out of my business."

George chuckled and pressed his weight against the girl to tip her off balance. She fell and found the others staring at her. No one was on her side.

Ciel cursed under her breath.

"I agree with Fred-sorry- it's just that if you let someone get away with it one time, then you give them the opportunity to do it whenever they feel like it."

She whined and rolled herself over on the grass. She had her forehead pressed against the lawn and forced her hands over her ears before the boys could both nag her once more.

She let out a scream of frustration.

"Maybe you should scream a little bit louder-" began George

"We don't think you've quite broken our ear drums yet!" finished Fred.

Fred found the need to jump on top of her and roll her over to her back. Ciel was blinded by the sun.

"Come on Ciel, let it all out!" laughed Fred.

"Leave me alone Fred," whined Ciel.

She smashed her hands over her face and clenched her eyes tight. She hoped that if she thought hard enough, everything could just go away. She wasn't successful. When she peaked back out she still had Fred sitting on her.

George crawled to Ciel's side.

"You know Fred and I could take out that anger for you," said George.

The look on both of the boys' faces worried her.

"We think we can –maybe- give Malfoy a taste of a new product of ours. His mum will be in for a big surprise."

As their product-testing girl, Ciel knew how bad some of the jokes got. Most of the time the results weren't bad, but when something _did_ go wrong, she was thankful the boys were with her.

Ciel frowned for a moment, but didn't dare ask them what their plans consisted of. She would have rather stayed in the dark about the whole thing.

"Wait- hold on!" yelled Cassiopeia, who launched off the ground like she was woken from a bad dream.

She gave the twins a disapproving look.

"Don't you dare do any of that rubbish 'til we get to school. I'm staying with that bloke, remember?"

"Aw, but then we won't be able to see the look on his mother's face when it happens," complained George.

Ciel and Cassiopeia glanced at one another before erupting into laughs.

She had to admit, she would have liked the see the look on Mrs. Malfoy's face if the boys did do something to her son.

As soon as Fred had contained his laughter, he slipped off of Ciel and took a seat back on the grass.

Cassiopeia still wasn't smiling.

"Seriously boys, if any of that happens, you have no idea how much Draco is going to start bitching." said Cassiopeia.

"Plus," added Ciel, who couldn't contain her smile, "his mummy looks like a swine; you both won't be missing anything."

They all laughed. Ciel was laughing as well, but she wasn't happy with what Mrs. Malfoy had called her. However, she knew that if she really did want to give any sort of revenge, she would have to do it her own way.

The group rested on the grass, until the sunset disappeared. It was only when the Diggory's returned that they understood that it was Quidditch time.

Both Cedric and Mr. Diggory were showing their support for Ireland, but Robert was missing. Once the twins noticed Cedric, they began to shoot kissing faces toward Ciel. She pushed them both aside as Cedric got into hearing range.

"We love you Cedric," cooed Fred.

George joined in happily by mentioning that he wanted to have his babies. Cedric pretended not to hear and stayed silent like his father. Mr. Diggory didn't look as though he heard any of the comments.

"Is your father inside, boys?" asked Mr. Diggory.

The twins shrugged at the same time, and gave Cedric one last teasing look.

"He's in there somewhere," piped in George, "probably trying to stop Ron from eating everything in the kitchen."

Mr. Diggory smiled at the last comment and let himself into the tent. Cedric stayed outside. He had his hand behind his bag, obviously hiding something.

It didn't take any time at all for Ciel to realize he was looking at her. She turned pink as Cedric stood awkwardly swaying from side to side.

"You look like you're having fun," chuckled Cedric.

Ciel bit her lip and nodded.

She was having a blast, but having Cedric stand so awkwardly made her curious. She was sure he would tell her what was going on.

"Where's Rob?" asked Cassiopeia.

Cedric turned to her. He didn't wear the happiest expression. He sighed and swatted the air with his hand.

"He's with some people from school."

He didn't look as though he cared who the people where, or as though he just didn't know the crowd his brother hung around. Ciel and Cassiopeia knew the type of people that Rob's friends were, though.

Robert wasn't the best when it came to picking friends. In fact, he never bothered to form relationships outside of the Slytherin house. Every one of his 'friends' were the same people Malfoy hung out with.

"So, Ciel," called Cedric.

He gave Ciel a small smile.

"Dad and I were walking here and I found something you might like."

"You bought me something?" she asked.

She guessed that this was the reason for his oddness. Cedric got down to her level before she would get up. He kept his hands hidden before the big unveiling.

She waited anxiously to see what it was.

"So what is it?" asked Ciel.

She bit down on her lips to stop herself from exploding. She hated being patient. A smile spread across Cedric's face.

"It's nothing big," he explained.

Cedric held out the present. She squealed. In his hands was a miniature action figure of the Bulgarian Seeker, Viktor Krum.

Ciel was speechless.

"You obsess over the bloke; I just thought you would like it," explained Cedric.

Ciel couldn't contain her excitement. She jumped on top of him and completely ignored the toy.

"This is amazing, thank you," screamed Ciel.

"Yeah, you're so romantic, Cedric," teased George.

"We want a present too, Cedric," begged Fred.

The twins broke into laughter. Both Cedric and Ciel disregarded the comment and kept hold of one another in the hug. Ciel felt his hold get tighter.

As soon as they parted, she took hold of the miniature Krum and watched it walk back and forth on her hand. It was impressive to say the least.

"Doesn't he look cool?"

Ciel held the miniature Krum toward the twins so they too could get a good look. They both squinted, making nasty expressions as they did so.

"He looks like he's been knocked upside the head," Fred put it simply.

George shook his head in disagreement.

"No, I think it's more like his mum dropped him as a baby."

Ciel rolled her eyes. Cassiopeia also took a look and made the same comment and expressions as the boys.

Ciel was sure there was something wrong with all of them. She then put the figure away but kept it fixed against her body. She didn't care if they thought there wasn't anything special to Krum; her opinion was the only important one anyway.

Ciel paid little attention to the boys as they began to impersonate Krum's walking. She gave Cedric another smile.

"Thank you," she whispered.

He gave her a welcoming smile back and whispered reassuring words. The comment made her turn pink. She already felt like he had spoiled her more than he should have.

Mr. Diggory came back sooner than anyone had wished for. Along with him were the rest of the Weasley's, including Bill, Percy and Charley who had apparated there earlier that day, as well as Harry and Hermione.

"Alright lads, lassies, let's get a move on," called Mr. Diggory.

Cedric got off the floor first and helped Ciel up as well.

Ciel chose not to follow Cedric as he went to his father's side. She knew only one other person who wouldn't tease her about the miniature Krum, and that was Ron. She made sure to stick behind at the end of the group, where the Golden Trio was, and found the perfect opportunity to approach the redhead.

"Look what Cedric got me."

Ciel handed Ron the miniature Krum. He looked as though he had been hit with a stunning spell. He completely stopped moving. As soon as Harry and Hermione realized their friend couldn't move, they stopped.

Harry looked like the person who understood best what was going on. Ciel wasn't thrown off about this, for Harry was a Quidditch person who he had his own team and even played Seeker at their school. She wasn't astounded to see that Harry understood the anticipation Ron was going through.

Hermione on the other hand, looked at them as though they had all gone nuts. She chose to stand with her weight on one foot, and to let the other one hammer into the ground as she stood anxiously.

"What do you think? Cool, right?" asked Ciel.

Ron's head turned toward her. His eyes widened as though he had seen a spider. He struggled for words.

"I-I can't believe they make these," said Ron.

Ciel smiled.

"Blood hell, I _need_ one of these."

Ron then dashed to Hermione and waved the miniature Krum in her face. Ciel found Hermione's expression to be more than funny. Hermione seemed hesitant as she took hold of the Krum miniature and examined it.

She tilted her head to the side and hummed.

"It's that Bulgarian guy you fancy, right?"

"I don't fancy him!" yelled Ron in defense.

Angrily, Ron snatched the miniature Krum out of Hermione's hands and shoved it back into Ciel's. Ciel and Harry found Ron's anger amusing.

It didn't take the four Gryffindors much time to find the group of flaming redheads all walking together. The others hadn't noted their absence. Ciel and Hermione found themselves caught in their own conversation.

The two were walking close; Ciel still had the miniature Krum out. They watched the doll in amusement.

"He looks…really grumpy," stated Hermione simply.

She pushed her bushy hair behind her hear and avoided some tree roots as they walked through the forest.

Ciel laughed gently as she almost tripped.

"Who cares how he looks. He's an amazing Quidditch player; that should be the only importance."

"But his looks are a bonus right?" asked Ginny, who had chosen to join in on the conversation.

Ciel nodded her head vigorously and lagged her pace. Harry and Ron were right at their tails. Harry gave Ciel a quick smile and then chuckled over the miniature Krum.

"You're definitely in love with that thing," laughed Harry.

Ciel turned pink. She then punched Harry on the arm playfully.

"Love is such strong word, Potter."

"Maybe, but it's the right one," said Harry.

Ciel gave Harry a look. His face lightened up with a childish grin that she couldn't help but love. The two walked side-by-side and finally realized that Hermione and Ron were already walking together. The two of them both knew how the unlikely pair liked one another.

Harry and Ciel shared a quick laugh.

"Do you have any idea where you guys are sitting?" asked Ciel.

Harry nodded.

"Were in the minister's box."

Ciel began to choke. Her eyes widened like a house elf's and her mouth hung open. Harry stopped walking, his round glasses slipping from the bridge of his nose. She could see he wasn't aware of who else was sitting in that box.

"Is there something wrong?" asked Harry.

"No, nothing at all. Good luck Potter."

Harry glanced at her with an unsure expression.

"Don't freak out on me. It's just that Malfoy is going to be there- his family is sitting with Cassie's. That shouldn't be a problem though; after all you'll know you're in the right place, if you see a woman that looks like she's got dung under her nose."

Harry looked startled.

"Dung…"

Harry wrinkled his nose and broke into laughter.

"Okay, I'll remember that."

Harry gave Ceil a gentle smile and knocked his hips against hers jokingly. Ciel giggled and hit him back. The two continued to bump hips with one another until they finally reached the stadium for the Quidditch game.

The stadium was ten times larger and more stunning than the field at Hogwarts. The silver aluminum that covered the sides of the arena looked as though it belonged to millions of UFO's and the best part was that there were no visible lines; just a swarms of people constantly moving to get inside.

Harry and Ciel both had the same eagerness in their eyes. At times like this, Ciel loved magic more than anyone. She couldn't wait to get inside.

When the whole group made it into the area, they parted ways. Ciel gave Harry and Hermione good-bye hugs and the group split.

Ciel sat on the side of the area with the Diggory's. Both Cedric and Ciel saw people from their school near where they were sitting. Cedric greeted a Ravenclaw 5th year, Cho Chang, while Ciel caught up with Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan, both fellow Gryffindors.

Everyone in the area was captivated by the game. The Veelas were beautiful and practically stunned every male in the area, while the Leprechauns threw gold to the crowd. However, what stunned Ciel was the outcome of the game.

No one could have predicted what had happened. Viktor Krum managed to catch the golden snitch. In normal circumstances, when the snitch is caught the team who has caught it would win the game. Out of everyone's surprise, Viktor Krum's catch only caused his team's defeat.

It wasn't the outcome Ciel had ever wanted, but she had to admit, Krum had style when he was in the air.

After the Quidditch game they went back to the tent. Ciel didn't get to see the Weasley's again nor did she see Cassiopeia. She and the Diggory family (minus Robert who had been missing most of the day) went to celebrate the outcome in their tent with hot chocolate.

Cedric was the most excited for Ireland's win, even though he didn't express it the same way Ciel would have had if Bulgaria had won. He chose to sit on his bed with a cup of hot coco in his lap.

Ciel had more sugar that she knew she should have had. She had finished her hot chocolate and chose to jump on Cedric's bed. She couldn't get her head off the subject of Krum catching the snitch.

"I always knew Krum was amazing," Ciel sang.

She continued to bounce on the bed, her hair constantly unsettled. She still held on tightly to the doll Cedric had bought her.

"I mean, who else would be able to catch the snitch like that?" Ciel continued to gloat.

Cedric groaned. He took a sip from his cup and placed it on the ground. He then kicked out his legs and sighed in relief.

"I bet I could have done that too," announced Cedric.

She knew he was joking. She knew he had skill, but that it was nothing compared to what Krum knew.

"You're good, but not _that_ good Ced."

Cedric's brow rose. He leaned over and snatched Ciel's feet as they hung in the air. She went crashing down to the bed and felt Cedric effortlessly pull her between his legs and hold on to her bare feet.

He wiggled his eyebrows.

"What were you saying about my game?"

Ciel smiled widely and tried to pull her feet loose from Cedric's hold. He didn't budge.

Ciel sighed and rested on her elbows.

"I said you suck, Diggory!"

Before Ciel could even do anything, Cedric attacked her. He tickled her at the arch of her foot, her weak spot. She squealed and tried to kick herself away from him. She was trapped until he stopped.

"Want to change your answer?" teased Cedric.

"Nope."

Cedric went at her body. The two wiggled around on the bed longer than she counted. The only way she would fight back was to tickle him also. It didn't have as much affect on him as she would have liked, but she felt had she had it even with him.

The two laughed for a few moments until they started to hear yelling from the front. Ciel and Cedric stopped at the same time, both of their eyes trailing to the angry voices.

"Why does it matter which friends I was with, you don't even know them!"

They both realized who was yelling.

Robert was home after he had been gone all day. Ciel was sure he was in trouble. Cedric seemed to sense the same thing. He rolled to the end of the bed, where he sat up. His feet stood flat on the floor, and his eyes focused back on Ciel.

"Dad's going to kill him," Cedric spoke softly.

He pulled himself off of the bed and offered Ciel his own to help her off of the pile of sheets. Getting off of the bed, Ciel and Cedric poked their heads out to the main room. Robert was running around, grabbing some of his stuff, as though he were planning on leaving for good.

Mr. Diggory stood helpless.

"Where are you going now-Robert stop moving- you better not be planning on going out again," threatened Mr. Diggory.

Mr. Diggory grabbed his son's wrist, but Robert snatched his hand back in freedom.

"Robert, just talk to me," begged Mr. Diggory.

To his relief, Robert stopped pacing the tent and finally looked at his worried father.

"You haven't been with us all day and the moment I see you again, and now you want to scurry off like your trying to run from something," he explained.

Robert looked at his father for a moment longer; he looked to be weighing his options.

He suddenly went back to stuffing things into his backpack.

"Nothing is wrong with me. Draco invited me to stay with him, so I'm going-and don't give me any of your excuses dad- it's your fault anyway that I haven't been able to see him all summer."

Normally his attitude toward his father didn't surprise Ciel or Cedric, but there was something off about him. Ciel felt like there was an especially anxious tone to his voice. What was he so scared of?

Ciel tugged on the sleeve of Cedric's shirt. He had the same thought on his mind.

"Hey, dad what's going on?" questioned Cedric.

Both Robert and Mr. Diggory's heads snapped up at the two who were standing quietly together. Robert shot his brother a look and went on with his business. Mr. Diggory, on the other hand, looked relieved.

"Your brother wants to leave the tent at this hour to 'hang out'."

Cedric frowned. Ciel then felt him secure a hand on her waist and lead her to the main room.

"Honestly, Rob, it's late. Talk to the ass in the morning," said Cedric.

Robert ignored him.

"Maybe you should listen to them-" started Ciel.

She took a note on how stiff he got. The belongings that were once in Robert's hands slipped to the floor. He looked as though a basilisk had petrified him: the desperation was written all over his face.

Robert opened his mouth to speak, but nothing at all came out. Ciel tried to read his lips: 'leave'. It didn't make sense.

Ciel frowned. She then took a step toward Robert, but before she could manage to ask him anything, he went back to filling his bag. As soon as he finished grabbing the last thing, he rushed out of the tent without a goodbye.

Mr. Diggory's mouth gapped before he staggered backward. He crashed on to the couch, his breath heavy in anger.

"I can't believe he just left after I told him he couldn't!"

Cedric gently pushed Ciel out of the way.

"Don't worry dad, we'll go after him."

Mr. Diggory was too shocked at the event to respond. Cedric and Ciel hurried to get their shoes and ran out of the tent in attempts to find Robert. Cedric held on to Ciel's hand, ushering her to follow him. Ciel was sure he had no idea which direction his brother had gone, but only knew that he was planning on going to the Malfoy's.

"Do you remember where Cassie was staying?" asked Cedric.

Cedric stopped wondering aimlessly and studied Ciel as she looked around the campsite.

Fires were blazing everywhere while the Irish anthem was being screeched from all corners of the area. Ciel could vaguely remember where Cassiopeia was staying. She was sure she knew where to head next, but something made her doubt Robert would be there. Ciel glanced at Cedric and nodded her head.

"I'm pretty sure it's in that direction."

Ciel pointed toward the area that they were suppose to go to. The two wondered for fifteen minutes, neither one sure of where they were headed. They knew they were in the right area. The tents all around them looked as though they belonged to rich stuck up people, but there was no sign of the youngest Diggory.

"I think we lost him…" Ciel spoke in defeat.

Cedric had his face square. He looked like he was trying to hold back from saying those unfortunate words.

"I have that feeling too."

The two stood around puzzled. It was a bummer for Ciel. They were outside in the middle of everyone partying and they were stuck trying to find Cedric's snobbish brother. She was going to make sure to kill him next time she had the opportunity.

Cedric kicked the ground in anger.

"We should head back. I'll just tell dad he slipped out of our fingers."

Ciel watched Cedric with the corner of her eye and continued to look around not only at the people celebrating but also for any sign of Robert. She didn't quite want to give up so soon, but she had to admit his 'message' was bothering her.

Eventually the two stopped looking and began to head back toward the Diggory tent. The parties outside were still as lively as ever. Fiddles played loudly while people ran around as though it were midday. Ciel stayed close to Cedric; the last thing she needed was to be left alone.

When the two were nearly in the location of their tent, they felt the ground rattle from an explosion. Ciel jerked from the sound.

BOOM.

The explosion went off once more and brought alarm more to Ciel than to Cedric.

"What do you suppose that was?" asked Ciel.

Cedric shrugged.

"No clue."

Ciel looked around their area. The explosion hadn't looked as though it had startled anyone else. Her best guess was that someone was setting off fireworks from their excitement from the game.

Ciel's felt her Gryffindor instinct slip up. She wanted to see what had made that noise. Without thinking, Ciel unhooked her arm from Cedric's and trailed toward the direction the explosion went off from.

BOOM.

The ground shook once again. She didn't stumble far before Cedric caught up to her and snatched up her wrist.

"What is it with you Gryffindors and running off to find adventure?" complained Cedric.

Ciel smiled lightly, but her thoughts were off in a distance. She couldn't stop thinking about where that noise could be coming from. She knew she shouldn't have been worried, but something felt off. She blamed the lack of sleep but she would have sworn the fires were more hazardous than they were before.

Ciel rubbed her eyes and began to rely on her sense of hearing more than she normally would have. The once cheerful screams were now desperate and fearful.

When Cedric and her noticed the change in the campsite, it was too late for either one to do anything. Herds of people ran in their direction, most of them scrambling from the same place. Forms of smoke hovered high above the fires, the flames catching everything in a blaze.

Ciel tried to move out of the way from the running people, but was knocked down out of the chaos of the crowd. The event happened so fast that she didn't have time to realize that Cedric was right there to catch her, when she was knocked over.

"Are you alright?" asked Cedric, as he hoisted her back up.

"Yeah but-" violent screams cut her off.

Ciel was sure she would be trampled over from the large group but Cedric pulled them both away from the crowd. She couldn't prevent herself from peaking out at the crowd bombarding through. So many questions ran though her head; she didn't know where to start.

"I wonder what's going on?" asked Ciel.

She leaned toward the direction Cedric had pulled her away from. She damned her height for making her too short to see anything.

Cedric tugged her back.

"Who knows? All I know is that we shouldn't be here."

Ciel tugged her weight in the other direction.

Cedric followed by trying to pull her into a safer area. She didn't want to leave; she wanted to see what was going on.

Ciel tugged her weight in the other direction.

"No, Ced, let's go this way."

She continued to pull, but once she saw that she would get nowhere when he was still holding her hand, she slipped out of his grasp. She then ran in the direction everyone else was fleeing from.

Ciel heard Cedric scream for her. She knew she shouldn't have just left, but she had to see what was happening.

Ciel urged to dig deeper into the chaos, but before she was able to, Cedric caught back up with her. He reminded her just of her father and how he disapproved of almost everything she did.

"Why the _hell_ are you heading _toward_ the screaming?" scolded Cedric; he was trembling with anger.

Ciel looked up at him innocently. The orange-red flames bounced off of his hollow cheeks and made him look even angrier than he was.

"I want to see what's going on," called Ceil over the distant screams.

Nothing seemed to get better. Fires were eating away tents, and personal belongings were abandoned on the floor. It looked like a massacre, minus the blood and dead bodies.

Ciel was surprised Cedric hadn't gone on to scolding her for being reckless. When she looked back up at him, she found his eyes were caught on something else, something she hadn't yet seen. Ciel followed Cedric's gaze and gasped.

In front of her was a group of five or six people shaded in hoods. They marched like an army all in a formation, holding their wands. The men in the back where shooting, red sparks in all directions. Everything they shot at burst into flame. The two people in front however, were doing something much different. The pair, who looked like the leaders of the pack, was levitating a small group of people in the air.

Ciel didn't know how to react. She couldn't understand why someone would treat other people like trash. Ciel felt the urge to stand up and defend the victims.

Ciel tugged on Cedric's sleeve.

"What are they doing?" hissed Ciel.

She couldn't stop staring at the group as they marched closer. The more she looked at people dangling in the air, the more she understood who they were: Muggles.

Ciel's mouth dropped.

"Are those-are those Muggles?" asked Ciel, in panic.

Ciel noticed that Cedric had snapped out of his trance. He looked worried.

"We shouldn't be here, Ciel."

"Wait, but-"

Before Ciel could say anything else, Cedric forced her into a run. He made sure neither one of them stopped running. He was acting just like the people who were trampling them before. What was going on?

Ciel could feel her lungs burn. Her mouth tasted like sweat and soot, but she can't stop no matter how much she wanted to. As soon as she realized Cedric had brought her back to the tent, she collapsed onto him to catch her breath.

Mr. Diggory was exactly where he was when they had left. His face was burried in his hands. He seemed to have no idea what was going on outside or even be aware of the mess that the pair had just been through.

As soon as Cedric called for his dad's attention he did realized they were back. Mr. Diggory was startled for a moment. He jumped to his feet.

"Did you find him?" asked Mr. Diggory.

He sounded desperate. Ciel couldn't help but smirk. If only he knew that finding his son wasn't the biggest problem. Cedric had the same thought.

"I think we have a much bigger problem, Dad…"

Mr. Diggory suddenly became much more alarmed than he had been before.

"There are Death Eaters-"

"What?"

Mr. Diggory looked as though his eyes were bulging out his sockets. Ciel had no idea what any of this meant. She had never heard of anything called 'Death Eaters' before. Were they supposed to eat the dead?

Mr. Diggory's face turned serious. He didn't look like the jolly man she had seen all day, but rather like a completely different person. He nodded his head slowly, as though he were to process what his son had just informed him of.

Mr. Diggory glanced at Ciel for a moment and then at his son.

"Go and try to find a Portkey. Do whatever you can to stay away from them. And especially don't let Ciel out of your sight."

Ciel felt Cedric's eyes wonder onto her. She sensed how worried Cedric was; he was indeed trembling.

"What about Rob?"

"I'll find your bother. In the mean time, do as I said. Get her to safety, Cedric," demanded Mr. Diggory.

Cedric gave his father a quick nod. As soon as he had, he helped Ciel back up to her feet and pulled her outside.

Ciel couldn't stop gawking. The destruction had even made it up to where they were. She wondered why the oppressing hadn't been stopped yet. There were millions of wizards there, couldn't anyone try and stop six people?

There was no time for questions. Ciel and Cedric ran through the dirt and ash but she couldn't stop all the questions running through her head. All she wanted was answers.

"What's going on?" asked Ciel once she managed to retain enough breath to speak.

Cedric didn't respond.

"Cedric, what is happening?" repeated Ciel.

She didn't care how many times she had to ask. She wasn't going to stop until she got the answers she wanted.

Cedric glanced at her as his lips trembled.

"This isn't the best time to explain. I need to get you out of danger. We have to make it to the forest."

For the first time since they had left the tent, she realized that he was pulling her toward the direction of the forest. She wondered why she hadn't realized it earlier; it wasn't very far from them.

For some reason, the image of the hooded figures lingered back in her head. She wanted to know more about the Death Eaters and understand why they were torturing the Muggles.

"What were those?" Ceil started once again.

Cedric ignored her.

"Please answer me, Cedric, I need to know."

"They're Death Eaters." He spat.

Ciel noticed every fiber in his body began to spark like electricity. If it had been any other situation, she would have considered slapping him for being so blunt.

"I know that, but what does that mean?"

The side of Cedric's mouth twitched. She could see him try to avoid answer the question. Finally, Cedric stopped running. They were near the majority of pedestrians that were still trying to flee the campsite. They were all taking the same route to get to the forest.

"Cedric-"

"They're You-Know-Who's supporters…they go after people like you."

Ciel's mouth hung open. She noticed he hadn't dared to set an eye upon her. It only made her more eager to ask most questions.

"I'll explain in a little but, for now, let's go."

Cedric stepped into the crowd of people. He held out his hand for her to take. Ciel watched it, wondering if she should flee. It was bothering her that no one was trying to do anything. Shouldn't someone try and act like the hero and put a stop to the Death Eaters' wrongdoings?

Cedric continued to wait for her. People from behind were beginning to usher him forward, and he could only hold his ground for so long.

Ciel made her decision. She chose to turn the other way and run. She was sure it was too late for Cedric to come running after her. She did feel sorry for causing him a lot of trouble, but if no one else were to stop the Death Eaters, then she would have to herself. It was just the way she was. She surely thought she could make a difference, no matter how young she was.

Ciel jogged aimlessly through the deserted campsite. She tried to avoid the fires as they expanded. She made sure to have her wand at hand so she would be able to attack or defend herself if she needed. She did after all learn a bit in that dueling club a few years back, but she wasn't the best.

BOOM.

As soon as she heard the explosion erupt again, she knew she was in the right place. Ciel made sure to stay quiet. The Death Eaters had remained in the formation they had been in before.

It felt like a hunt: she made sure not to make any noises when she hid. The more she thought of a strategy, the less she realized that one of the Death Eaters in the front had noticed her stalking. When she finally saw she was in danger, the Death Eater had already pointed his wand in her direction.

She felt stupid. What was she supposed to do? She was a child. How was she supposed to stop a group of You-Know-Who's followers?

In an instant, a stunning green light jetted out from the tip of the hooded figures' wand. She couldn't think of anything else but to close her eyes and hope for the worse.

Ciel waited anxiously, but nothing struck her. She didn't feel lifeless or hurt; in fact it felt like she was being dragged.

Ciel snapped her eyes open. She was being hauled across the dead dirt. She could feel the hand of someone from behind her pulling on the back of her shirt, forcing the soles of her shoes to slide on the surface of the floor.

She started to wail her hands around, so the person dragging her knew she was conscious. Silently, the person let her go. Ciel turned quickly, her hair slapping her face. She couldn't recognize her savior.

The stranger was a deal taller than her and covered by black robes. The cloak wasn't like what the Death Eaters wore, but it was able to mask them from the light shooting in all directions.

The stranger held a finger in the air to silence her. Ciel listened. The stranger then gestured her to follow behind them. Even though Ciel had no idea who the person was, she was sure he or she couldn't have been bad; he or she had obviously saved her.

Bravely, Ciel followed. She ducked under fallen planks of wood when she needed to and jumped over ditches on the floor. Nothing looked familiar to her, which didn't surprise her. Everything was smashed from the panic, but she was relieved that the fire had settled down to thick black smoke only.

Ciel lost track of time as she followed the masked figure. The stranger brought her toward a tent. It was untouched by any of the chaos as though there had been a shield charm placed on it beforehand. Ciel didn't ask any questions when she stepped inside. The walls inside were thick and gray. There wasn't much room to walk, though.

Ciel felt as though she had been inside there before, like it wasn't some random tent she had walked into. Ciel dragged her feet helplessly though the hall until she and the hooded being stopped at a locked door.

Ciel unconsciously trembled.

"Er-excuse me- I appreciate the help and all, but who are you?"

Ciel waited anxiously for an answer but the cloaked figure simply tilted its head in her direction, remaining voiceless.

Ciel felt embarrassed. She was sure she was being rude.

"Er- never mind. Thank you for helping me."

Ciel tried to smile as genuinely as she could. Her hands were shaking. She knew she had to settle her nerves, quick. On the other hand, the stranger didn't seem to notice her nervousness. He looked away from her and turned toward the door.

Just like in one of those bad American movies, the person brought his gloved hand to the top of the door. Ciel watched as the leather of the glove slid smoothly down the metal door. Once the hand got leveled with the person's waist, he clenched his hand into a fist and pounded three times.

As soon as the third knock had finished bouncing off the walls, the door cracked open. Ciel's mouth hung open. Cassiopeia's thick black hair was the first to greet Ciel. Cassiopeia's eyes were wide.

"Out of all people-" Cassiopeia spoke, dazed.

She shook her head furiously and grabbed Ciel. She pulled her into the room and forced her into a suffocating hug. It took Ciel a few moments to realize she was standing in the meeting room Cassiopeia and her had been in earlier that day, only this time the room was empty except for Cassiopeia, herself, and her savior.

"What's going on?" asked Ciel hopelessly.

Cassiopeia looked and her, emotions seemed as though they were going to explode out of her.

"You have no idea how worried I was for you, there are Death Eaters out there!"

Ciel rolled her eyes.

"I know who's out there, thank you."

Cassiopeia wasn't at all bothered by her sarcasm. She looked genuinely glad that her friend was alright.

"What I really want to know is, why the fuck is no one trying to stop them?"

"That's a good question-" the voice came from behind her. Ciel turned toward the person who had saved her. Her eyes widened once she realized who it was.


End file.
